W140 Diesels
 

Do W140 diesels use the 3.5 diesel? (AKA Rodbender) or do cars like this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1992-Mercedes-Benz-300-Series-SD-DIESEL_W0QQitemZ120180957429QQihZ002QQcategoryZ6330QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

use something else?

Thanks, Dave.

Each and every 140 Diesel has the bad motor.

Not all of the motors are bad, but if you roll those dice, only gamble enough that you can afford to lose.

A 140 Diesel is a great car until/unless the motor begins to burn large quantities of oil, before giving up in a great puff of smoke. Trouble is that you cannot predict which vehicles will do this and when. Hell it might never happen but it might happen next week.

Caveat emptor, my friend.

Well, I like the theoretical concept of a W140, powered by a diesel, but with all of the known problems with that particular diesel, I suppose it isn't worth it. I saw the 300SD on the back (rather than 350SD), I thought it might be different. So, I guess the last safe S-Class diesel was the 126 300SD/L, right?
Thanks, Dave.

Get the W-140 with the six cylinder gas engine. A bit more power than the diesel and fuel economy within a couple of points.

This is something of a extention of the post I made a few days ago, about a "MB Commuter Car". Not that a W140 is a commuter car, or a W126 for that matter, either, but it was mentioned on that post about a 300SD 126, and when I saw that 300SD 140 on E-Bay, It kind of begged me to pose the question:).

Thanks, Dave.

"More power" is a bit misleading. Yes the S320 has more horsepower, but all it means in this case is that the same torque that the diesel has comes later and stays later. In a drag race the S320 would probably win, but the diesel will seem stronger in the lower RPM's and won't need to be downshifted as much when going uphill. And the diesel will get about 4 more MPG. If this diesel engine were good I'd choose it, but otherwise I agree that the S320 is a worthy alternative. If economy isn't a big concern, then one of the V8's would provide even more pleasure.:D

http://www.edmunds.com/used/1995/mercedesbenz/sclass/14492/specs.html
http://www.edmunds.com/used/1995/mercedesbenz/sclass/14491/specs.html

Ahh.........by your own posted specifications, the S-320 has more torque than the diesel. Sure, it may require a few more rpm's to get the peak torque, but the diesel doesn't have much torque below 2000 rpm's either.

I'll bet the driveability at low speeds would be identical, especially if the S-320 has slightly shorter gearing.

Not to mention the fact that you're not dealing with a good chance of being in possession of your own personal, ticking, time bomb under the hood.

No reason to risk the W140 Diesel, not when the S320 is such a good car.

Well, maybe U.S. market diesel W140s did. But most world markets got in late 1995 the 300SD which was later renamed S 300 D TurboDiesel. This car featured a completely new 3.0 liter turbodiesel which was very reliable, powerful and emissions efficient. The car was available until the end of 1998.

Not to mention the S320's have a 5spd trans, and if you buy one that is 1997 or later its the wonderfull 722.6.

The S320's are a ton faster, like 2 seconds faster to 60. The M104 is a wonderfull I6, that has a lot more power. Remember S350D 150hp, S320 230hp. :D

In this case the S320 is just an all around better car than the diesel W140's that we got.

The difference in peak torque is 3 ft-lbs. For all practical purposes and factory variations, they are the same.

As I've indicated previously, looking at horsepower alone doesn't tell the whole story. The W211 CDI "only" has 201 hp and an '02 Dodge Intrepid has 234 hp and is almost 400 lbs lighter, yet the CDI feels about twice as powerful (I've driven both). The reason for this is the burst of mega-torque that the CDI has, even though 0-60 might be about the same. The Intrepid just delivers smooth, boring torque over a wider range. All I'm saying is, don't just look at horsepower because it doesn't tell you all that much.

All I know is they are both slow. The S600 is the W140 to have, the 400hp V12 pwns all.:D

M120 at 6,500rpm under a bridge, OMG I need a towl.:D:cool:

Well let's see. I own one of these "rod benders". A '94 S350D w/3.5L time bomb in it. Saw a post last night from a guy with a '95 350D, he has 340K+ on his time bomb. He didin't sound like it was fixin' to explode, but it did have a squeal to it. Sure, they're heavy, 4600lb+, 0-60 is embarrassing if you're down on the strip. Last time I owned a car that I could brag on 0- whatever time, it got me in more trouble than I could afford. I pull a 300 mile one way commute once a week and I've yet to find a vehicle other than the Benz that lets me get there without feeling like I've been through the grinder. Wish I could put OnStar on it. And of course being Diesel, I can put all the turbine fuel through I can lay my hands on, try that with the S320 or any gasser. Price is right too, free.
If memory serves me, there were only 1k of the S350D's sold in the US, any of you experts got numbers on how many of them just up and bent their rods? If so, what kind of mileage were on them? Maybe I need to get a set of rods.

Wayne

Just get a diesel 126. They look better anyhow.

The S320 really has to scream for power to get underway. Moving that lunk of a car takes a lot of twist. The 350 has more get up and go than the 320, easily. Even accounting for the shorter gearing of the gasser six.

Also, when it works, the 350 diesel is much more reliable to take on long distance trips as there is little to fail.

I've had good amounts of time behind the wheel of both. The 350 is great for the "relaxed" driving style, with enough torque available "right now" in city driving. The gasser I6 is good for "aggressive" driving styles, where the person is always coming into dangerous uphill on ramp situations. Fuel mileage suffers accordingly, however.

Bottom line: The best engines for the W140 are the 5.0 liter M119, and my personal favorite: the 6.0 liter M120. The M120 version S-Class would have about the same acceleration as the later model E420/E430 (perhaps slightly quicker, even). But fuel economy is probably about half.